Dollar Tree will sell struggling Family Dollar for $1 billion. It bought it for $9 billion.

Cisco beat Wall Street expectations for sales and earnings in its fiscal second-quarter results, which it released after the close of trading Wednesday.

Shares slid 7% in the after-hours session. A lighter-than-expected forecast for fiscal third-quarter profit margins may have played a role.

For the fiscal second quarter of 2026, the computer networking equipment giant reported:

• Non-GAAP earnings per share of $1.04 vs. the $1.02 expected by Wall Street analysts, according to FactSet.

• Sales of $15.35 billion vs. the $15.11 billion consensus expectation.

• AI infrastructure orders from hyperscalers of $2.1 billion vs. $1.3 billion in the previous quarter.

• Revenue guidance for fiscal Q3 of between $15.4 billion and $15.6 billion vs. $15.19 billion consensus estimate. 

• Adjusted gross margin guidance for fiscal Q3 of 65.5% to 66.5%, compared with analysts’ forecasts for 68.2%.

• Fiscal year 2026 sales guidance of $61.2 billion to $61.7 billion vs. previous guidance of between $60.2 billion and $61.0 billion.

Along with other companies like Lumentum, Corning, and new S&P 500 member Ciena, which provide things like the wiring and networking equipment needed to connect server racks, Cisco shares have had a strong start to 2026 as the AI data center boom continues to roll. 

Through the end of trading on Wednesday they were up 11% for the year, compared to a 1.4% gain for the S&P 500.

This is a developing story.

McDonald’s reported Q4 results on Wednesday that beat Wall Street’s expectations, which the company attributes to its “value leadership.”

For the last three months of 2025, the fast-food giant reported:

• Adjusted earnings per share of $3.12, compared to the $3.05 analysts polled by FactSet were expecting.

• Revenue of $7 billion, higher than the $6.8 billion analysts were penciling in.

• Global comparable-store sales growth of 5.7%, compared to the 3.9% growth analysts were expecting. In the US, comparable sales grew 6.8% versus the 5.4% that was expected. The company said this was “driven by positive check and guest count growth primarily from successful marketing promotions.”

McDonald’s has emphasized discounts and promotions, such as its $5 meal deals. “McDonald’s value leadership is working,” CEO Chris Kempczinski said in a statement.

Shares were little changed in after-hours trading.